


Power

by crescentmoon223



Category: The Fall (TV 2013), The X-Files
Genre: Alternate Universe, FBI Academy, Gen, Mentor/Protégé, Pre-Season/Series 01
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-19
Updated: 2019-08-19
Packaged: 2020-09-07 18:36:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20314135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crescentmoon223/pseuds/crescentmoon223
Summary: At the FBI Academy, young Dana Scully is assigned to spend the day shadowing DSI Stella Gibson in the field. What happens next may shape her future in the Bureau.





	Power

**Author's Note:**

> anonymous asked: hi!! for the prompt: pre x files scully is sent to observe stella’s work on the field and take notes,, idk if this makes any sense so feel free to adjust it to your liking 💞
> 
> First of all, sorry it took me a million years to write this, anon! And secondly, I hope this is what you had in mind. It took some time for me to work this one out in my head. Obviously, this is AU 😏

“Trainees, today you’ll each be shadowing an agent in the field. This is an opportunity to observe, to learn, to ask questions, and to test your skills as future agents. I encourage you to take full advantage and utilize every chance to further your training,” Agent Carson said from the podium at the head of the lecture hall. The door behind him opened, and men and women in neatly pressed suits began to file into the room.

Dana Scully sat up straighter in her seat. A day in the field shadowing an agent was an invaluable opportunity. Plus, it would be exciting, a chance to get a taste of her future career and a break from training, drills, and testing. If she was lucky, she’d get to observe a case where she could show off her medical knowledge.

“When I call your name, please proceed to the front of the room and locate the agent you’ve been assigned to,” Carson continued. “Trainee Abernathy, you’re with Agent Lopez.”

Abernathy made his way down the aisle and paired off with one of the men in suits. Dana gathered her notebook and pen, stowing them in her bag so she’d be ready when her name was called, not for the first time wishing she were closer to the beginning of the alphabet. At least she’d chosen to sit in the front row, so she had a better view of the line of agents than most of her classmates. The agents were an intimidating bunch on the whole, staring stone faced out at the room full of trainees.

Dana wasn’t intimidated, though. On the contrary, it was all she could do not to raise her hand in a futile attempt to hurry the process. Tapping one foot against the floor, she watched as her classmates were called, one by one.

“Scully, you’re with Gibson,” Carson called finally.

Dana stood so quickly her chair squeaked against the floor, smoothing her hands over her T-shirt and khaki pants. She picked up her jacket and bag and made her way toward the row of agents remaining at the front of the room. A dozen piercing stares lasered onto her as she approached.

She lifted her chin, tucking a flyaway strand of hair neatly behind her ear, painfully aware that not only was she one of the youngest trainees in her class, but also that she looked even younger than her twenty-six years. Add her gender and small stature to the mix, and she had her work cut out for her. She’d already had a bitter taste of just how hard it was going to be for her to be taken seriously in her chosen field. Case in point, the man in front of her grunted in annoyance, as if the possibility of being paired with her was ridiculous.

She pulled herself up taller as she passed him, grateful his badge read Timmons and not Gibson. She passed by several more men, receiving more condescending looks, until she was ready to scream, _I’m older and stronger than you think. I could kick your ass if I needed to._

But she didn’t, of course, although she was sure her eyes were spitting fire by the time she approached a petite blonde woman whose badge read Stella Gibson. Something inside Dana relaxed, as if her spine had been held taut by an elastic band that had just loosened, at least a little bit. But her momentary relief at discovering she’d been assigned to work with a female agent evaporated as she met Agent Gibson’s eyes, because…_whoa_.

Dana rocked back on her heels. This woman was every bit as powerful and intimidating as the men she’d walked past, if not more so. She was in her mid-forties, impeccably dressed in a white silk blouse and black pencil skirt, her piercing blue eyes coolly assessing Dana with an intensity that made her squirm. Steeling herself, she stuck out her hand. “Trainee Scully.”

Gibson took her hand, giving it a firm shake. “DSI Gibson.”

“You’re British,” Dana blurted, and the hint of a smile crossed the other woman’s lips.

“I am, yes,” she confirmed, her tone brisk but not dismissive. “Not an FBI agent either, although I’m assisting the Bureau for the summer. Your agent in charge was short-handed today, so I agreed to step in.”

“Well, I’m ready,” Dana told her, confidence rebounding. “Do you know what kind of case we’ll be working on today? I’m a medical doctor, so I could get my bag if you think it would be useful.” She paused, mentally calculating how long it would take her to run back to her dorm.

Gibson shook her head, leading the way toward the door. “That won’t be necessary. You’ll just be observing today, Trainee Scully.”

Dana caught herself watching the sway of DSI Gibson’s hips as she walked and averted her gaze to the notebook in her arms. She was on her way to her first crime scene! Her ponytail flopped against her neck with each step as she rushed to keep up with DSI Gibson. The detective’s stride was brisk and purposeful, while Dana felt somewhat like an overeager puppy following in her wake. Nerves battled excitement in her belly, making her feel as if she’d drank too much soda and now the carbonation was fizzing inside her, looking for a way out.

“Right over here,” Gibson said, leading Dana toward a government-issued silver sedan. Her demeanor was curt but not condescending, which hopefully boded well for Dana’s learning potential today.

“So, you work for the Metropolitan Police?” she asked as she climbed into the passenger seat. She set her bag on the floor before buckling the seatbelt across her lap.

“Yes,” the detective answered.

The inside of the car smelled vaguely…feminine was the best word Dana could think of to describe it. The air carried a hint of DSI Gibson’s perfume or her shampoo, something fresh and floral. Dana was accustomed to being around female agents who attempted to blend in with their male counterparts by wearing pants and trying to look and act as tough as possible. It was a strategy Dana had already begun to mimic. She desperately wanted to be taken seriously, wanted the patronizing looks to end.

In contrast, the woman next to her oozed sexuality. Her makeup was flawless, her blonde hair perfectly coiffed. Her clothes looked expensive and flattered her figure. Everything about her was soft and feminine, and yet, she gave off an intimidatingly powerful vibe. Instinctively, Dana knew this was not a woman to mess with.

“How did you wind up assisting the FBI for the summer?” Dana asked as they drove.

“A favor for a former colleague.”

Apparently, Gibson was also a woman of few words. Dana made several more attempts to get a conversation started, receiving polite but brief responses in return. She so wanted to pick this woman’s brain, to learn anything and everything she could from their time together today, but apparently, she’d have to learn by observing, because asking questions was getting her nowhere.

They drove for about a half hour, eventually pulling to a stop on a quiet residential street. Well, Dana imagined it was usually quiet. Today, the narrow, tree-lined street was bursting with law enforcement vehicles. Crime scene tape surrounded a single-story brick house on the left. Officers and crime scene techs bustled about, marking and examining the area.

“It’s your lucky day, Trainee Scully,” DSI Gibson said as she parked the car. “Many of your classmates will be observing break-ins and other misdemeanor crime scenes today, but we’ll be working an active homicide.”

“Oh.” Dana straightened in her seat, excitement sparking inside her. Her first crime scene, and it was a homicide! It _was_ her lucky day. The experience she gained today would be invaluable to her future in the bureau. “I can’t wait to get started.”

“That’s the spirit,” DSI Gibson said, lips quirking as she got out of the car.

Dana grabbed her notepad and pen, following the detective as she crossed the street to speak to the officer working the perimeter of the crime scene. The young man’s gaze dropped to DSI Gibson’s cleavage as they approached, and when he looked up, there was nothing professional about his smile.

Gibson stared him down until he cleared his throat, his expression sobering. Then she gave her and Dana’s names, which he jotted in his ledger before ushering them beneath the crime scene tape.

“Right this way, ma’am,” he said, nodding politely as she passed.

_Impressive._

Knowing she was only here to observe, Dana bit her tongue, holding her questions for a more appropriate time as they made their way into the house. Gibson stopped to speak with several other officers—all men—as they walked, and she handled each of them effortlessly, never raising her voice or betraying even a hint of impatience as her credentials were repeatedly questioned.

By the time she and Dana had reached the upstairs bedroom where the bodies were located, Gibson had a flock of admirers following in her wake, which she either didn’t notice or refused to acknowledge. “This may be difficult,” she told Dana. “Please don’t hesitate if you need to step out for a moment. It happens to the best of us.”

Dana’s gaze settled on the two blood-soaked bodies in the master bed. Her fingers clenched around her notepad, eager to observe DSI Gibson in action and soak up every drop of knowledge she spilled.

Gibson approached the bed. “Suspected murder suicide. Fred and Martha Hutchins. Married for over thirty years.”

Dana stepped up beside her, taking in the carnage. Martha Hutchins lay on her back, eyes closed, an almost peaceful expression on her face, aside from the bullet wound in her temple. Her husband lay on his side facing her, fingers still clenched around the gun in his mouth. Dana felt a tug of sadness for them, especially Martha. What had prompted this man to kill his wife and then himself?

“Are you all right?” Gibson asked.

Dana looked over and saw the detective watching her closely. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

Gibson looked unconvinced, and Dana realized she’d probably expected her to have a stronger reaction to the scene, the blood, the mess, the scent of death in the air. She’d assumed Dana had never seen anything like this before.

“This is my first crime scene,” Dana told her, “but I saw more than my fair share of bodies in medical school.”

“Ah,” Gibson said with a slight nod. “That would make a difference, I suppose.”

She began questioning the officers who’d been first on the scene, quickly and efficiently working the room while Dana followed in her wake, making notes. Since it would not actually be up to her to solve the crime, her notes pertained mostly to things that caught her interest and questions she’d like to ask DSI Gibson later, if the opportunity presented.

As it turned out, the couple had left a joint suicide note. Apparently, Martha was in the early stages of dementia, and Fred had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Knowing he soon wouldn’t be around to care for her, they’d decided to leave this life together.

“That’s so sad,” Dana said softly, peering over the detective’s shoulder as she reread the note. “And maybe even a little bit romantic, in a tragic kind of way.”

“Let’s not romanticize a murder-suicide,” Gibson said briskly.

“Right,” Dana murmured, dropping her gaze to the notepad in her hands.

She spent the next hour following DSI Gibson around, becoming increasingly impressed with the way the detective handled the other officers at the scene. So quiet, but so…_powerful_. She was in charge, and everyone knew it. And yet, she wasn’t bulldozing her way around the room the way Dana might have if she’d been asked to lead, attempting to force the men here to take her seriously.

_Quiet strength_, she wrote in her notepad.

_Power stance_

_Poker face_

_Unflappable_

_Cool demeanor_

_Professional_

_Kind_

Before she’d realized what she was doing, she had filled two pages with observations about DSI Gibson, trying to pinpoint what it was about her that allowed her to command control of a room full of law enforcement so effortlessly. If Dana could just figure it out, it might be the most important thing she learned today.

She had chosen a male-dominated, testosterone-fueled field—two of them actually, if she included medicine—and she could use all the help she could get in navigating her way through it. Gibson teased a lock of hair between her fingers, tossing it over her shoulder. She was mesmerizing to watch, so beautiful, so effortlessly cool and in control.

_Hair toss_, Dana wrote, wanting to remember the way DSI Gibson flipped her hair over her shoulder. It was sexy, but also indescribably powerful to watch.

_Cleavage_

_Fitted skirt_

_Heels_

Okay, her list had taken an unprofessional turn. Dana’s cheeks heated, and she closed her notebook, clutching it against her chest. Maybe she ought to spend a few minutes observing without the distraction of her notetaking.

She shadowed DSI Gibson as she finished her investigation and led the way back to the car. They’d been inside the house for hours, and Dana felt sweaty and rumpled from the activity. The woman beside her looked impossibly as fresh as she had when they’d gone in. How did she even do that? Was it some sort of British magic?

“Did you get everything you needed?” Gibson asked, gesturing to the notebook clasped in Dana’s lap.

“Yes, I think so,” she said. “Do you mind if I ask you a few questions while you drive?”

“Not at all,” Gibson said as she started the car.

“Perfect.” She’d managed to contain herself while they were inside, but she had questions, _so many_ questions. This time with DSI Gibson was an invaluable opportunity to learn, to grow, to figure out how to handle herself in a man’s world.

Dana shifted to fasten her seatbelt, and the notebook slipped from her lap, flopping open in the gap between the front seats. Gibson reached for it, pausing in the act of handing it back to Dana as her gaze caught on…oh God, it was the list of power attributes she’d written.

She looked at Dana now, her blue eyes gone glacier cold. “Is this a joke?”

Dana squeezed her eyes shut as embarrassment burned its way up her neck, resisting the urge to snatch the notebook out of the detective’s hand. “No, ma’am,” she said quietly. “It’s…I was trying to figure out how you do it.”

“How I do what?” Gibson asked, her tone edged in steel.

“How you…command a room,” Dana managed, forcing herself to meet the other woman’s gaze, hating the hostility she saw reflected back at her. _Cleavage_, she’d written. _Heels_. God, it looked like she was objectifying her the same way the male officers inside had. Dana wanted to melt through the floorboard and disappear. “You make it look so easy. They respect you. I want…someday, I want them to respect me too.”

Gibson sighed, her gaze again dropping to the notebook as she glanced over the rest of Dana’s notes. When she looked back up, her eyes had softened. “It’s not in the way I dress.”

“Isn’t it?” Dana countered. “The other female agents I know try to dress as much like their male counterparts as possible, to blend in, I guess. I do it too.”

“You’ll never get ahead by blending in,” Gibson told her, handing the notebook back to Dana. “You want to stand out, to be noticed, but for the right reasons.”

“Like what?” she asked breathlessly.

Gibson’s tongue darted over her lips, wetting them, and Dana stared, transfixed. “You have to walk into a room like you belong there. If you’re in charge, act like it. You can’t ask for respect or hope that it will be given to you. Expect it. Demand it.”

“You didn’t,” Dana said. “You didn’t demand anything of anyone today.”

“Didn’t I?” She cocked a perfectly plucked brow.

“Oh,” Dana said, her voice gone whisper soft as she remembered how Gibson walked into the crime scene earlier, with the quiet confidence of a woman who owned the place. She’d demanded that respect without ever saying a word.

“It won’t be easy,” Gibson said, the edge gone from her voice now. “You’ll have to work twice as hard, and still, it will take you longer to rise through the ranks. You’ll receive lower pay and fewer accolades, and your male colleagues will harass and belittle you every step of the way.”

“Oh,” Dana said again, even quieter. Yes, she’d known this, but somehow, for a few minutes, she’d allowed herself to believe that if she owned a room like Stella Gibson, the disadvantages she faced would disappear.

“But that doesn’t mean you don’t have power,” Gibson said in her crisp accent. “Know your assets and use them.”

“My assets?” She felt herself flushing again, and this time not entirely from embarrassment. Reflexively, she reached up and touched the outline of the cross pendant tucked beneath her T-shirt.

“You’re a woman. Don’t try to mask that fact. Use it to your advantage. People will underestimate you, expect you to be weak. Sometimes, you can use that assumption to trip up an unsuspecting criminal. Most of them are not nearly as intelligent as they appear on television.”

Dana grinned. “I bet.”

DSI Gibson’s lips quirked in response. “Take them down when they’re least expecting it.”

“I think I need to…” Dana reached for her notebook, frantically jotting down everything Gibson had said.

“Perhaps most importantly, you can be an advocate for other women,” Gibson said. “Don’t let female victims be seen through a male lens. See them. Speak up for them.”

“Yes.” She nodded as she wrote.

“Be confident and unapologetic, but never compromise your integrity.”

“Thank you,” she told the detective earnestly. “Really. This might be the most valuable advice I’ve gotten since I started my training at the academy.”

Gibson nodded as she shifted the car into drive and pulled away from the curb. She drove for a few minutes in silence before her gaze darted to Dana. “Perhaps you’d like to continue this conversation later?”

“Yes,” Dana answered automatically. She felt like she could listen to this woman speak for a million years and never learn all there was to know about her, or from her. And also, it gave her a strange thrill to think of seeing DSI Gibson again later, in a more casual or informal setting. Dana had always been an unabashed teacher’s pet, but this felt…different.

“There’s a bar in my hotel. Say, eight o’clock?”

“I’ll see you there.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not always a fan of AU, but I kind of fell in love with the idea of baby Scully being mentored by Stella and receiving advice that might shape her as an agent. I hope you like it! And a huge thank you to Heather for beta reading this for me! xx


End file.
